Don't forget me!

See you November 7, I'll be thinking about you!

Are you being served?

This is a glass covered tray that I made for my older sister last summer. I needed a house gift QUICK! I never think of this stuff beforehand, GGRrr. I've had two trays for probably 15 years looking for the perfect application. Whew!

Really bad picture, I know, I was just desperate to snap it before we ran out the door.

The plate is paperpieced onto unbleached muslin, schmear-dyed with coffee grounds. The cup is fused on top with another piece of muslin in between so it wouldn't shadow thru. The recipes are from our mother (upper left), my father's mother (upper right) and my mother's mother (lower right). I somehow have ended up with everyone's recipe boxes! The plate fabric is significant because my father's mother left me all her Blue Willow China.

My sister loved the gift. We all had quite a laugh, my mother was a STICKLER for spelling and she misspelled RAISINS as RAISONS.

WOO-HOO for a Site Meter

Thanks dd#2 for the encouragement, let's see if I did it right (aka, let's see if you need to fix it for me!).

First Meandering

Sorry for the over exposed picture, more will follow as I get this next project finished.
*edited to say...geez, can't even crop my pic properly these days!

This is my first attempt at meader machine quilting. I have been strictly a stitch-in-the-ditch kinda gal, or diagonal utility quilting. Those kinds are good for the anal. I know I need to GET OUT OF THE BOX, and this baby quilt was a good place to start. The colors are light/med sage greens, pale yellows, cheddars and bits of unbleached muslin and is made for my nephew's first son.

I've got alot of practicing to do, lol. I have problems keeping all the roundy parts roundy, and the stopping and starting are a bit rough. I kept repeating the "head and shoulders" mantra, but before I knew it I was off on all sorts of tangents.

I've got the first of my Charlie Brown socks (blogged below) more than 1/2 done, been working away at that two, alternating between knitting and sewing and catching up on TIVO'd programs, lol. It's amazing how far behind on my shows I can get with only 2 hours at home in the evening!

Hope your weekend was productive!

Them R not Rabbits ! ? !

I've gone to "hell in a handbasket", they're going to have to pry all methods of artmaking out of my hand when I die.

I joined up yesterday with a "little" group of 1400+ participants in Socktoberfest . As you can see the next pair is already in the works. This time it's Italian Sockotta which is 45% Cotton, 40% Superwash Wool, and 15% Nylon. Socks are multiplying like rabbits around here, but I really love making them, I think it's the short rows! I'm into the heel flap on this one, the skinny yarn is hard to get ahold of. I DO like the Charlie Brown appeal of this varigated stuff!

I did get the baby quilt all pinned Saturday, and ready for MQ, pictures maybe tomorrow, camera at home is d-e-a-d.

Stay tuned!

First Pair of Socks

TA-DA! My first pair of socks. More like slippers, but what did I know about double-pointed needles, sport weight vs. sock weight yarn, ssk, ssp and which way to re-load stitches after frogging. Not to mention...getting the stripes to match and the "kitchner toe". Nada, zippo, zilch. The entire process was a huge learning curve.

These were made on 3.25 bamboo double-points (48 stitches) with sport weight "yarn" from JoAnns. Never again.

I've purchased a skein from Emily and it's over in my bag yelling, "pick me next"!

So....now here's my problem. I don't know what to change. Do I change the size of needle AND yarn AND number of stitches? I can't find any site that says "do this, this and this" without alot of "if, ands or buts"! I am after a nice weight sock to wear with my crocs to work, semi-casual.

HELP!!!